Sharing a flat for the season: what to agree before you move in

Private room or shared room?

On Find your Home every listing says exactly what's being let. If you're looking to share, these are the two options that matter:

• “Private room”: the bedroom is yours, while the kitchen, bathroom and living room are shared with everyone else in the home.
• “Shared room”: you share the bedroom itself, so you sleep in the same space as other people.

If you want a place to yourself, there's “Studio” and “Entire place”. A group can also rent an entire place together and split the bedrooms between you.

A shared room splits the rent between more people, but leaves you less privacy and less sleep if your shifts don't line up. Before you decide, look at whether the listing says “Private bathroom” or “Shared bathroom”, whether there's a “Washing machine”, and whether “Bills included” applies. Anything the listing doesn't show, ask in your request.

Who pays for what

Money is the first thing that sours a flat share, so talk it through before you move in, not at the end of the first month. The list worth covering:

• Rent: whether it's split equally or by room, and which day of the month each person pays.
• Deposit: who pays it and to whom, and how it comes back at the end — to everyone together or to each person separately.
• Bills: if the listing says “Bills included”, ask which ones exactly. If not, agree how they're split and who pays them.
• The building's shared charges (in Greek, koinochrista): ask the landlord whether they're in the rent. Who pays what is, first of all, a matter of what you agree with the landlord.
• Shared shopping: detergent, toilet paper, cooking oil, whatever everyone uses. A shared kitty or a list on your phone is enough.
• Dealing with the landlord: one person for everyone, or each person separately. If it's one person, everyone should know what was discussed.

Whatever you agree, write it down, even as a message in your group chat. When someone later remembers it differently, the written version settles it without a row.

Shifts, sleep and quiet

This is where a seasonal flat share differs from a student one. One person closes the bar late at night, another starts the hotel breakfast shift, a third works a split shift. The home is awake at every hour, and your house rules need to allow for that.

• Quiet hours: not only at night. If someone sleeps during the day after a night shift, agree on an afternoon quiet window too.
• Bathroom: a rota for the mornings you all start at once saves you from running late for your shift.
• Kitchen: do you cook together or separately? Whose shelf in the fridge is whose, and who does the dishes?
• Cleaning: a rota for the bathroom, the kitchen and the shared spaces, so it doesn't all fall on one person.
• Washing machine: if there's one for everyone, split it by days or hours, especially for uniforms that need to be clean the next day.
• Guests: whether anyone can have people stay over, how often, and with how much notice.
• Smoking and pets: talk about them before you move in, not once they've become a problem.

If someone leaves mid-season

It happens in a season: a job doesn't work out, someone moves to another island or goes home early. The rent doesn't shrink with them. Agree in advance:

• Who covers their share of the rent until there's a solution.
• Whether the landlord accepts a replacement. Ask the landlord; don't assume.
• What happens to the departing person's share of the deposit, and when it's returned.
• How much notice each person gives before leaving.

Have this conversation before the season starts, while it's hypothetical and about nobody in particular. In the middle of summer, with tired people and an empty bed, it's much harder.

Keep Find your Home's length rule in mind too: “Stays of 60 days or more only.” The dates you send in a request are the stay you're asking for, so pick them based on how long you'll really stay.

Staff house, or a place you rent together

If the business provides a staff house, your housemates are your coworkers, and the terms of the accommodation, such as whether the room is private or shared and how many people live together, are part of your job agreement. Get them in writing, as the guide to your seasonal work contract explains.

In a place you rent yourselves, the agreement is between you and the landlord, and it doesn't depend on who you work for. If you change employer, your home doesn't change with them. Either way, the rules of daily life are yours to agree.

To see whether a rent fits your pay, look at the seasonal pay report, worked out from open listings. If it's your first season in Greece, read what to expect from your first season as well.

This guide gives practical advice on sharing a home and is not legal advice.

How to find a place to share

1. Open Find your Home and filter by kind: “Private room”, “Shared room”, or “Entire place” if you're renting as a group.
2. Read what's included: bathroom, bills, washing machine, and how far the home is from where you'll work.
3. Send a request with your dates and the number of guests. In the message, say who you'll be living with and which shifts you work.
4. “Contact details stay hidden until the request is accepted.” So does the exact address: you see it once the landlord accepts your request.
5. After acceptance, see the place and arrange the deposit and rent directly with the landlord.

For how housing on Recruvo works overall, read the seasonal housing guide. If you have a spare room yourself, you can list it through the same flow as a whole home; every listing is reviewed before it's published.